The Secret of Kelvin
by RadicalT0aster
Summary: The team heads out on a dangerous S-class job. But when things take a turn for the worse and its members are gravely injured, can they save not only themselves but also each other? ON HIATUS.
1. The Mission

**I do not own Fairy Tail. If I did, I probably wouldn't be sitting here at my computer writing this, now would I? ;-)**

* * *

**Chapter 1**

"**The Mission"**

"HELLO, FAIRY TAIL!"

"Aye!"

Natsu and Happy burst through the guild doors, nearly shattering them off their hinges in the process. Lucy and Erza, having a rather serious discussion about an upcoming job, looked up from the various maps and documents scattered across the table in front of them.

Erza sighed. _That's Natsu for you, _she thought. _The idiot would sooner drop-kick an open door than figure out how to use a doorknob._ She dismissed his entrance with a quick wave of her hand. "Yo, Dragon boy," she called. "Judging from you expression, I take it things went well?"

Natsu was grinning from ear to ear. "You'd better believe it did! Those bandits didn't know what hit them!" Erza raised an eyebrow but made no further comment as he stood on one of the many vacant tables and started describing the battle with animated hand gestures and movements.

A week ago, a lot of jobs had suddenly sprung up in large numbers. The job board was overflowing with requests from near and far villages and provinces. Naturally, Natsu had been the first to take one up. The other guild members had also taken up the jobs rather enthusiastically, which was surprising since most of the time they would rather sit around the guild lazily and order more beers than what was good for them. Even Master Makarov seemed more on edge than usual.

The interior of the guild, however, remained as it always had. Cobwebs coated the corners of the room, left there for god-knows-how-long. The wooden tables were unbalanced, rough and unpolished with stains from sloppy eaters and heavy drinkers, and most of them had a patch-work feel to them, wood colors not corresponding and rusted nails held the boards together just enough for them not to fall into a pile of splinters at the slightest touch, most likely from the result of having to reconstruct them multiple times after the guilds' notorious brawls that Fairy Tail had become known for. The room had a lingering smell of beer and grease; but nonetheless, it was a home away from home.

The room usually had large numbers of people, chatting merrily and describing their days' adventures and happenings going on in town. Today however, the room seemed rather the opposite.

Natsu, noticing for the first time the lack of people in the room, leapt off the table and went to join Lucy and Erza. "Hey, where is everybody?" he asked.

"Off on their jobs still, most likely," Lucy said, not looking up from the document in front of her. It appeared to be a very detailed, hand-drawn map. Natsu was puzzled by her rather serious expression. Normally, Lucy was an upbeat person who seemed to lighten the mood of those around her, but lately she seemed as grim-faced as Erza. Even her apparel seemed more serious, he thought, noting her black jeans and T-shirt. She still wore her keys on her belt though. At least that hadn't changed.

Gray came over at that point, shirtless as always. Why he chose to be that way, nobody really knew. It just felt… _right_; to Gray at least. He had never been one for shirts. He preferred to show off his well muscled torso whenever he felt the occasion arise, which just so happened to be 24/7. He yawned. "You guys get any more info yet?" he asked Lucy.

She shook her head and slid the map away from her, discouraged. "I made a detour to the area a couple days ago, but I couldn't get close enough to the village's borders without getting detected, so _THIS_ is the best I could come up with." She passed the paper to Gray and he chewed his toothpick anxiously as he examined it.

"Wait wait wait!" Natsu yelled loudly, flailing his arms around. They all looked over at him as if noticing him for the first time. "What the heck are you guys talking about?" He hated being left out of the conversations, especially when he had no idea what the conversation was about.

_Impatient as ever,_ Erza thought. She knew they would have to explain all of the details to him eventually, so now was as good a time as ever.

"Master's given our team a job. An S-class one, to be exact," she explained.

Natsu's expression went from irritation to confusion to joy and repeated itself in the matter of a couple of seconds. "An S-class!" he asked in disbelief. "Seriously? For real? Like, an official S-class?" he stammered, jumping up and down like a small child. Happy flew in circles above his head, muttering something about fish.

"That's what I just said, you dolt." Erza muttered under her breath.

"Here's what we know so far," Lucy said, back to business. "There's been suspicious activity in the desert province of Kelvin, near the mountains far west of here." She indicated the position on her map. "The province has had a loose government to begin with, being it's such a small area, but their government officials, what few they had, have suddenly disappeared."

"It's turned into a gang-war down there," Gray chimed in as he took up a chair. "The townspeople are forming societies to try and override the military and each other. It's every person for themselves."

"Yeah," Erza agreed, her mind working overtime. "And they've closed their town border to outsiders and have set up checkpoints on the path through the mountain range, which is the only way through the terrain." She pointed to a thin, jagged line cutting through the mountain. "They've totally cut off all access for extra military reinforcements to be sent in. That is, if there's any left…" She felt no need to finish the sentence. She knew the others had been thinking the same thought as well.

"Anyway," Lucy said, in an attempt to break the silence and keep the group from thinking negatively; though the situation did seem rather impossible. She pushed the thought aside and continued where Erza had left off. "Erza, Gray, and I have been taking turns scouting the surrounding area to try and find an alternative path to the village so that we can gather more information." She drummed her fingers on the table and gazed at the map for the umpteenth time. "So far," she said slowly, "the only solution I see is to take the long way _around _the base of the mountain range." She indicated it on the map with her index finger. "It'll take more time, for sure. Though I can't see any other possibility." She put her elbow on the table and propped her head up on her hand, lost in thought.

Erza nodded several times. It made the most sense. The terrain was too unpredictable, and people rarely traveled it, so they wouldn't expect four wizards and a cat to be sneaking in right under their noses. "The only tricky part," Erza prompted, "is remaining undetected once we near the village."

"Well," Gray said, standing up. "We'll figure that out when the time comes, I suppose." He turned to Natsu, who seemed up be taking in all the details they had given him. "Get all that, hothead?" he snickered.

"So," Natsu said slowly, "basically, we go in and find out what's happening behind-the-scenes?"

"Uh-huh. That's pretty much it in a nutshell," Lucy confirmed, starting to pick up papers. "Just try not to blow anything up this time…" she muttered.

"Wait." Natsu said suddenly. "One question: Since we have to stay under the radar, that means we won't be driving or riding anything, will we?" he asked, his face turning slightly green just at the thought of vehicles.

"Nah, I was thinking we could just waltz in on a horse-drawn carriage like a circus parade!" Gray said, sarcasm heavy in his tone. "Pfftt, what'd you think, numbskull?" he asked incredulously.

Natsu appeared not to have heard him. "Well in that case, I'm in!" Natsu cried, once again jumping up and down. Flames shot out of his nostrils, though he didn't seem to notice.

"Aye!" cried Happy.

Erza finally stood up. "I'm going to go ask Master when we can leave, since Natsu is finally here." Before she left the room, she turned and addressed the group. "Until we get word, I suggest we all get some rest. We don't know when we'll get another opportunity to do so." And with that, she turned and headed up to the second story.

* * *

After Erza left, Natsu decided to stay and help Lucy pick up the many papers scattered about the table. He couldn't help glancing at Lucy as he did so, and he felt a small pang of concern. It wasn't like her to be so serious or tired looking. He could understand how sneaking around in a hostile territory for a few days could affect you both mentally and physically, though he had a feeling she was pushing herself. There were times when she would voice her concern of believing herself to be weak, but nobody in the guild thought that was true.

"So..." Natsu said, trying to make small talk. He had always had soft spot for Lucy, though he'd never voice it out loud. It took him a couple seconds to come up with a topic for conversation, finally settling on one. "First _official _S-class, huh," he said, grinning at her.

"Yeah, pretty big news," Lucy agreed, adding a paper to a stack on the table. "Although, something has been bothering me…" she said as she leaned against the table.

"And what would that be?" he asked with concern, stopping in front of her so that he could read her expression.

Lucy seemed to think about her response for awhile, finally settling on a response she thought sufficient. "Well, it may be nothing, but don't you think its weird how around the time the Kelvin province started having issues, job requests suddenly started pouring in?" She jerked a thumb at the job board across the room. There weren't any more thumbtacks to hold up all of the notices, and papers lay strewn across the floor.

Natsu let that sink in. It did make sense in a way that they might be connected somehow, but at the same time there could be a plausible explanation. Or maybe they were just overlooking something. He shrugged. "I suppose so," he said slowly. "Did you talk to Erza about this?" he asked as the thought occurred to him. Surely Erza would come up with something to explain it.

Lucy shook her head. "No," she said. "Like I said, it may be nothing or maybe I'm just paranoid. Besides, we have enough on our plate to worry about right now. I don't want to get everybody worked up over nothing." She paused briefly. She didn't want Natsu to worry about this, either. "If it comes up again, I'll tell her, kay'?" she said.

Natsu seemed reluctant to let it go, but finally, he nodded. "Okay then." He looked around the room, noticing all the papers were cleared off of the benches and floor. "I guess we're done here until Erza gets back." He yawned. He hadn't realized how tired he was until now. It was getting late. He hefted his knapsack over his shoulder that he had deposited under the table when he had arrived. It jingled as the contents inside it were shaken and bounced around.

"Well, I'm off to-" he began, then hesitated. He didn't know where he was going to go next. He didn't have a home; or at least, a _permanent _one. He could stay in the guild, but it wasn't exactly the most comfortable place around. His mind searched for other possible locations, but eventually, his mind ran blank.

Lucy, seeming to read his thoughts, came to a quick decision. "Say, how bout' you stay at my place for tonight?" she offered.

Natsu was caught off guard for a second. Lucy had never _invited_ him to stay in her apartment before. He had normally just let himself in unannounced. It took him a moment to contemplate that the words had been said to him, and stuttered a quick reply. "Um, actually, that'd be great!" His features broke into a wide grin.

Lucy made an attempt to return the smile, but it was a dismal failure. She was both mentally and physically fatigued over the past couple of days. All the preparation for the job had taken its toll on her, but she was determined not to let it get to her. Natsu, oblivious to her reaction, lead the way out the doors. The damp night air hit their faces as they made contact with the outdoors. Natsu breathed it in appreciatively. It sure was a nice night.

Together they walked down the road to her apartment. They walked in silence, but it was a comfortable one; one between friends. It was a relatively short distance, so they arrived in quick time. When they entered the room, Gray was already there; having left after Erza had told them to go get rest, he lay fast asleep in one of the armchairs. How somebody could sleep comfortably sitting up, Lucy had no idea. Right now, she was too tired to care. Still fully dressed, she dragged herself over to her bed and fell facedown onto it, asleep instantly as soon as her eyes closed.

Natsu unrolled his sleeping bag and lay down on it, his arms linked behind his head. He stared up at the ceiling for awhile, trying to clear his head. His mind was still swimming from the conversation in Fairy Tail. He knew the danger of the whole thing, traveling into the unknown desert region was a daunting thought. He heard the slow, steady breathing of his companions on either side of him, and eventually he fell into a troubled sleep.

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**End of chapter 1! Whew, I worked hard on this, and there's going to be a lot more to come. My goal is to make this fanfic ongoing for awhile, and I have plenty of good ideas to keep the story interesting. Sorry if I didn't mention Happy too much; I'll try and add him in more during later chapters. :D**

**Too long? Too short? I accept ANY constructive criticism or ideas that you would like to see later on. All reviews are welcome!**

**I'm currently working on writing the next chapter. I don't know when I'll have it done, but I'll get it up ASAP!**

**THANKS FOR READING, AND STAY TUNED FOR CHAPTER TWO!**


	2. First Light

**I do not own Fairy Tail. If I did, I probably wouldn't be sitting here at my computer writing this, now would I? ;-)**

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**Chapter 2**

"**First Light"**

Natsu awoke as sunlight streamed in through the window of Lucy's apartment. He was forced to squint to be able to see anything through the direct and blinding light. It took him a couple of seconds to notice Happy, curled up against his chest. He had most likely ventured in through the window during the night, Natsu guessed.

Careful not to disturb the sleeping cat, Natsu slowly sat up as drowsiness washed over him. He had not slept soundly. It was a statement, not a question. The images were still livid in his mind, and he wanted nothing more than to forget them.

Natsu stood up and stretched, imagining he could hear the tendons and cracking and groaning in his stiff arms and legs. He looked around the room for some sort of entertainment. The others were still asleep, much to his annoyance. He didn't just want to sit around and wait for somebody else to wake up. Finally his eyes settled on Lucy's desk, upon which a single book sat. Curious, he picked it up.

It was obvious the book was well dated. It was leather bound and the spine was peeling in several places. He was afraid it might fall apart when he touched it, so he handled it with care. He didn't want Lucy yelling at him later. He briefly skimmed over the pages. There were numerous charts of stars and constellations, but even if he wanted to, he couldn't make out what they were. The text was in a different language altogether.

He had a feeling Lucy knew exactly what it meant, being a Celestial wizard and all. After a few minutes of flipping through the book, he came to the conclusion he wasn't going to find any entertainment in it, and set it back on the desk.

Just as he did, Erza entered the room, slamming the door behind her with a greater force than she had intended, causing Lucy and Gray to awake with a start.

"SON OF A—" Gray yelled, toppling out of his chair and onto the floor. He quickly rose to his feet, expecting to face some sort of danger. Then noticing it was only Erza, he lowered his guard.

"Geez, Erza," he scoffed. "What the hell was that?"

Erza stayed in the doorway, looking embarrassed. "Heh, sorry bout' that," she quickly apologized. Then she pointed at Gray. "Gray, are you missing anything perhaps?"

Gray gave a yelp of surprise and quickly threw on a T-shirt. Erza rolled her eyes at him. She was relieved to see that the rest of the team was here. It would save her the trouble of having to gather them all together.

"Erza," Lucy said, wide awake since Erza's entrance. "Any particular reason for you coming here?" she prompted.

"Oh, right," Erza said. "I talked to Master last night and he says we should leave for Kelvin as soon as we're ready." She tossed her own pack onto the floor beside her and then turned to the others.

"I'm ready," she stated. "Now if you don't mind hurrying up, we're running on borrowed time."

Natsu raised an eyebrow, something he seemed to be doing a lot lately. "Borrowed time?" he echoed, and Erza nodded.

"I'm afraid to say that Kelvin has gotten even worse. Even as we speak."

* * *

"What d'you mean it's gotten worse?" Gray testified. His voice was still heavy with sleep.

Erza was quick to answer. "The violence is spreading like a plague. Gangs have crossed through the mountains and have raided the ports of Klammel and burned their ships."

Klammel was a small sea port to the south of the western mountains. Its economy was heavily dependent on fishing and provided for a large percentage to the mainland. Burning the port's ships would take a heavy toll on the small town. No doubt it would be weeks before new boats were constructed.

Natsu was outraged. His fist slammed down onto the table in front of him. The sound reverberated around the room and seemed to hang in the air for several seconds.

"Those punks!" Natsu growled. "The only burning there's going to be is me smoking them to pieces!" He whirled around to face Erza.

"We can't just stand here while they attack helpless people! We need to leave as soon as possible!" His voice was urgent. Erza seemed a little taken aback at his reaction, but knew in her mind Natsu was right.

"Exactly." It was Lucy who had spoken this time. She had been quietly standing in the corner of the room, pondering on the situation in front of them. Now she looked up. Her eyes were sharp and deadly looking. "We don't have time to lose."

* * *

They were packed and on the road by noon. They planned to follow the road west for around 20 miles, then branch off to the north about 5 miles from the front of the mountain that separated them from the desert region of Kelvin and follow it parallel. Oddly enough, the mountains had never been given a title. They were known simply as "the western mountains". It was rumored the mountains were composed of iron at its core, causing compasses to whirl wildly when they came close enough. Other rumors claimed the mountains were cursed. Neither science nor superstition, they were mountains either way.

Lucy had estimated that it would take them at least 5 days of constant travel to make the journey. As they walked and the sun bore down on them they could already feel the change in temperature turn to hotter-than-normal.

They had worn apparel appropriate for the job; Erza could simply ex-quip to whatever she needed; Lucy wore her sturdy all-around black jeans and a loose-fitting white T-shirt with worn black and white sneakers; Gray and Natsu were wearing their usual, and Happy flew above them, looking down on them from a bird's-eye view.

Natsu was unaffected by the change in heat. Gray however, was taking the full force of it. His face was glistening with sweat. Dive into a blizzard? Sure. Swim in near-freezing water? Why not. But hike through the freaking desert? No way! Lucy and Erza trudged on in uncomplaining silence.

Gray came to a stop, causing the others to do the same. "I think we should… take a break." He said, breathing heavily. Lucy had been worried about him from the beginning of the job. Ice wizards and deserts didn't mix well. You could easily compare them to oil and water. As Gray dragged himself to sit under a small tree off to the side of the road, a thought suddenly dawned on her.

Erza glanced at her curiously as she fumbled around in her pack. They had been careful to only bring the necessities. Finally finding what she had been looking for, she pulled out a bundle of blue fabric. Lucy held it out to Gray.

"I think this might come in handy," was the only comment she gave as he took it from her wordlessly. He held it out in front of him, and what the object was suddenly dawned on him.

It was an ice-cloak. Made out of thousands of tiny, glittering ice crystals, they never melted and always kept their icy temperature. As soon as he held it in his hands he felt the temperature around him lower drastically. It was like a portable freezer.

He put it on slowly. It came down to about a foot from his feet and the front was open. It had a zipper, but he decided to let it hang open, further showing off his bare upper body. There was a hood, too. He tried it on and it fell over his eyes without cutting off his vision. He gaped at Lucy.

"Man, you're the best, Lucy!" he said, smiling gratefully at her. "Where'd you find this?" he asked delightedly.

She shrugged, but nonetheless flushed slightly at his praise. "Stellar Spirit world, actually." she said. "Loke though it might come in handy.

Loke had been a member of Fairy Tail before Lucy discovered that he was actually Leo the Lion, now one of Lucy's spirits. His key was easily distinguishable from the others on her belt, having an emblazed symbol on a roaring lion at the top of it. Oddly enough, he could appear without Lucy having to summon him. Gray and Loke had always gotten along pretty well.

He felt a surge of affection for his old friend and Lucy. Gray stood rooted to the spot, trying to find the words to express his gratitude.

Natsu looked at Gray with a look of jealousy and then asked Lucy, "So, you got any fire cloaks on you?" He touched his finger to the side of his nose and winked. Lucy however, was no longer paying attention. She and the others were far ahead of him on the trail.

"What the-! Don't try and ditch me, you jerks!" Natsu yelled, chasing to catch up to them.

* * *

The small party traveled well into the late hours. The stars shone brightly above them by the time they decided to stop and make camp for the night.

Lucy had been gathering firewood, suddenly stopped and whirled around, glancing up as she did so. The cliffs behind them were visible in the moonlight, the tops towering over them.

_Strange. I could've sworn…_

"Something the matter?" Erza asked, looking questionly at her.

Lucy now turned her head to the side, to where the cliffs were in her left peripheral vision. _There it is again!_ She could faintly make out a shadowed figure on the tops of the peak of the cliff. But when she turned to look at it directly, her eyes spotted nothing. It was an old trick she had picked up some time ago. The peripheral vision in your eyes could make out some things direct eye contact could not in the dark. With the uncertain light of the full moon shining down on the cliffs, it was possible her eyes were playing tricks on her.

Lucy could feel Erza's unwavering gaze on her, and she replied in a low voice, "I have a feeling we're being watched."

* * *

**Without further ado, chapter 2! Ha, I just realized that rhymed!**

**Thanks so much to all who reviewed and motivated me to write this. You guys are awesome! ^.^**

**As to where I got the idea for Gray's ice cloak, I don't know. I just had the thought one day when daydreaming in class. Ha-ha!**

**Uh-oh! It looks like trouble is on the rise for Lucy and the gang. More secrets and surprises are awaiting in the next chapter! As well as… wait, a battle scene?**

**SO BE SURE TO CHECK OUT CHAPTER THREE! As always, I'll have it up A-S-A-P. Darn, why can't I stop talking in rhythms? I seem to do it all the time. Here, there, everywhere… Gah!**


	3. Unseen Observer

**I do not own Fairy Tail. If I did, I probably wouldn't be sitting here at my computer writing this, now would I? ;-)**

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**Chapter 3**

"**Unseen Observer"**

Lucy could feel Erza's unwavering gaze on her, and she replied in a low voice, "I have a feeling we're being watched."

Erza looked to the position Lucy had indicated, but saw nothing out of the ordinary rock formation.

"Maybe you're just tired," Erza compromised. "It's been a long day, after all." She gestured to the trees behind her where a short distance away Natsu and Gray were sitting comfortably around a campfire Natsu had conjured up.

Lucy did feel a bit drained, now that Erza had brought it up. She still had an uneasy feeling in her gut, but she decided to let the matter rest. The uneven shadows the moonlight formed created odd patterns in the rock, and it was possible she had imagined it.

Lucy nodded to Erza in a manner that suggested there would be no further discussion on the topic, and they began to slowly walk back from the direction they had come. But at the last second, Lucy saw a brief flash in the very corner of her vision. She instinctively reacted; grabbing Erza and pulling her to the ground just as a crossbow bolt flashed ten centimeters above her head and landed, quivering, into the trunk of the tree where Erza's head had been a second earlier.

Erza was caught off guard by Lucy's quick actions and was startled at how close she had come to having the silver tip of a crossbow bolt embedded into her skull. The two quickly dived behind the cover of the trees.

Lucy, with her back pressed against a tree, was surprised at the deadly accuracy their enemy possessed. Three solid _THUNK_stold her another round of bolts had just struck into the tree she was behind. She was surprised at her own actions as well. She hadn't even fully processed in her mind that they were being attacked before she had reacted. Her senses had certainly sharpened in recent weeks.

Meanwhile, Erza, a few meters from Lucy, was trying to formulate a strategy to take their unseen opponent down. He clearly had the advantages here. He could see their positions from the elevated landscape he was firing from, and there was no way possible for them to get to him from their current positions.

Lucy had taken in those observations and was selecting a key from her belt.

"OPEN, GATE OF THE ARCHER, SAGITTARIUS!"

There was a puff of smoke and Sagittarius appeared before them. Now if you think of Sagittarius as a centaur looking figure, half horse half man, then you might want to double check in this case. Sagittarius is indeed those two things combined, but it could accurately be described as a man wearing a horse suit. Despite his physical appearance, he is a deadly shot with the bow, which was just what Lucy needed right now.

"Hello hello!" he addressed Lucy, saluting her rigidly.

Lucy, crouched behind her makeshift cover, grinned halfheartedly at him. "Sorry to pull you into this, Sagittarius, but I need your long range abilities." She pointed to where the black clad figure stood, his silver crossbow glinting in the moonlight.

Sagittarius gave a brief nod and quickly notched an arrow, drawing back and sighting his target. He raised the bow a fraction of an inch to allow for drop weight, and released. The series of motions took less than a second to complete. The arrow sliced through the night air in a graceful arc. For a moment it looked as if the arrow would hit dead-center on its target. But then the unexpected happened.

The arrow was shot down in mid-flight, splitting into two down its center. The responding crossbow bolt was obviously the heavier and forceful of the two, cutting the arrow down before it could get close enough to do any damage. The now useless arrow fell to the ground in a shower of splitters while the bolt continued on its unperturbed pathway.

The bolt once again struck the tree Lucy was residing behind. Except this time it sliced through the bark, ripping a hole in the side of the truck and grazing Lucy's now exposed upper arm. She gave a hiss of pain as it sliced at her. She needed to act fast.

Lucy noticed that there was a brief couple seconds when the shooter needed to reload his weapon. In those seconds he would be distracted. That was the opening she needed.

"My apologizes, hello hello." Sagittarius hastily said. Like most of Lucy's spirits, they had a close bond to Lucy and hated to disappoint her expectations, although Lucy had none. Her spirits were like another part of her, and she respected each of them as a whole. Although Aquarius had never warmed up to her as much as the others. No matter.

Lucy dismissed his apology with a quick shake of her head. "Can you try again?" she pleaded, and he nodded, a second arrow laid on the bowstring. He was about to draw back when her voice stopped him.

"Wait until after he shoots," she advised him and he nodded a second time. Their eyes met and some kind of understanding passed between them, the message clear to them both. Lucy balanced on the balls of her feet, and then leapt into a forward roll into the cover of a nearby tree.

"NOW!" Lucy yelled as she sprung into action.

As expected, she heard the heavy _thunk _and then the following _hiss-twang_ of the bowstring. She waited, her ears strained, finally hearing a satisfying _THUD_ as the arrow found its mark.

Erza peered cautiously around her cover at the noise. She was a close combat fighter, not a long distance one. So in her turn she had let Lucy handle the situation, confident in her abilities as of lately. She let out a bottled sigh of relief as she saw the immediate danger pass.

The cloaked assassin now lay sprawled at the bottom of the cliff, unmoving. Lucy and Erza made eye contact. An unspoken message passed between them and Erza nodded. She straightened up from her crouched position and slowly made her way to the prone figure, sword raised in case of any sign of attack. But as she got closer to the supposed assailant, realization dawned on her and lowering her sword, she gestured to Lucy to come next to her.

"You might want to come have a look at this."

Lucy dismissed Sagittarius with brief thanks, and came level to Erza, her hand clasped on her shoulder in an attempt to stop the blood flow from her wound, and her eyes widened in surprise.

The black cloak and crossbow were the only things remaining where the body had fallen, except the body was nowhere to be seen.

"Transportation magic." The two girls said in unison.

* * *

Lucy and Erza made their way back to the camp site, Erza carrying the crossbow and Lucy the cloak. They were definite clues as to who their attacker might be, so they felt the need to investigate further.

When they emerged into the camp ground, Natsu and Gray were both dozing comfortably, but opened their eyes a fraction at the noise of leaves and twigs crushing under footsteps. Gray was still wrapped in his new ice cloak, perfectly content with the icy temperature even though the temperature had lowered considerably as the sun had set. Natsu was keeping his distance and was huddled around the fire. Fire and ice didn't mix well. Lucy thought their opposing elements were one of the reasons for their frequent quarrels.

"Took you long enough," Natsu yawned. "What kept you-?" he began to question, but was alarmed at the sight of blood seeping from Lucy's shoulder and into her shirt sleeve. The red liquid shown obviously on the white fabric and he jumped up from his sitting position and gestured to her arm.

At Natsu's nonstop flow of questions, Lucy became aware of her injury. In the rush of things her adrenaline had taken over and her arm was nothing but a dull throb. Now it became more apparent. Lucy tried to insist it was just a scratch and that she felt perfectly fine, but she was fighting a losing battle. She at last gave in to the groups' pestering after Erza threatened to knock her unconscious if she didn't oblige. '_Erza certainly has an odd way of showing concern' _Lucy thought wiry.

Erza lifted up the tattered shirt sleeve to examine the wound. She let out a mental sigh of relief. The cut wasn't too deep but it was a lengthy one, running from the shoulder bone around to the sensitive skin close to the armpit in a half circle. She couldn't be sure if it had hit any major bones or tendons, so she began poking and prodding with her fingers around the area. Lucy winced, but didn't dare object to Erza's method. Lucy trusted that Erza knew what she was doing.

Erza, satisfied there were no broken bones, reached for the med kit the group brought on every mission. She then cleaned and bandaged the wound thoroughly. She predicted it should heal without any complications over the following weeks.

With that out of the way, Gray and Natsu now looked to the two dirt-streaked faces sitting across the campfire from them. "Okay, now tell us what the hell happened back there! You two were gone for a while, ya know." Natsu demanded, his dragon features briefly showing now that he was worked up.

The two looked at each other. The right side of Lucy's mouth twitched upward in a lopsided grin. '_Your turn.'_

Erza let out a long, heavy sigh of annoyance. This was going to take awhile. "Where to begin…?"

* * *

**Here's chapter 3, up and running! I kind of ran out of ideas, not to mention I pretty much wrote this chapter all in one sitting and its pass midnight where I live. As you could imagine, I'm pretty sleepy. -.-**

**I'd appreciate reviews on this chapter to see how you readers out there think of it or what you'd like to see later on. Again, thanks to all who've reviewed so far. It means a lot to me.**

**One question I'd like to ask you guys, though:**** Do you think I've added enough detail? I don't want to babble on forever trying to make a point, but I don't want to just breeze by and add no detail. I know there's a different perspective between the writer and the reader, so I'd like to know how I'm doing so far so that I can grow as a writer in the future and write better pieces for your enjoyment.**

**Erza and Lucy have made it out nearly unscathed by a surprise attack from a mysterious figure. They've managed to take him out, but… he's vanished! Who is this assassin? And what does Lucy know that the others don't? Will more attacks follow suit?**

**COMING SOON TO A COMPUTER SCREEN NEAR YOU!**

**I'm currently writing the next chapter, so I'll have it up ASAP, as usual. For now, I'm off to catch some Z's.**

**As always, thanks for reading!**

**Note: I forgot to add the horizontal line above the chapter and title. Since it had been bugging me for some time, I fixed it. It's a minor detail, but I felt it needed to be there. :)**


	4. The Search for Answers

**I do not own Fairy Tail. If I did, I probably wouldn't be sitting here at my computer writing this, now would I? ;-)**

* * *

**Chapter 4**

"**The Search for Answers"**

The injured and crippled man limped forward in desperation across the large war camp. His leg throbbed painfully, every small step sending a burning sensation in waves up his lower body. It took all his willpower to not cry out, biting his tongue in an effort to reinforce the action. His breath came in ragged and wheezing gasps, all the while muttering curses to the one who had reduced him to such a state.

_Damned mage,_ he thought in pure fury. _They got lucky._ His features broke into a sinister sneer. _Next time, I'll make sure that your luck runs dry. Permanently._ Little did he know he wouldn't get a second opportunity.

He passed the rows of single man tents covering a majority of the camp's left wing. Several small campfires were still burning brightly, the flames licking the wood joyfully. A large animal carcass rotated over a cooking fire, the fat dripping into the coals causing the flames to splutter and spit smoke, further sending the mouthwatering smell wafting into the air. The camp was full of people all bustling about on one chore or the other. Several glanced in his direction, but he took no notice. He had to report to the leader immediately.

He hobbled to the main tent pavilion, the large canvas visible over the other structures. He knew his leader would be there, deciding what actions to take next in their plan to overturn the resistance forces that posed a threat to them throughout Kelvin. Two guards were stationed outside the tent entrance. They quickly moved aside as they saw the figure approaching.

He threw the tents flaps aside and stepped into the illuminated pavilion. An oil lantern burned brightly, its light touching the corners of the room. A lone figure sat in the back of the room, fingers crossed and head bowed, waiting. As the newcomer entered, the leader looked up, the eyes a startlingly sharp blue. The blue-eyed man stood, closing the distance between the two in long, elegant strides. His white robe concealed his feet so he appeared to be gliding. Jet-black hair made the robe appear even more vivid.

The newcomer was bent over, breathing heavily from his trek to the camp. He spoke now, his voice gruff and pleading at the same time.

"M-my lord," he stammered. "I-I have been observing those you requested t-to be f-followed."

The blue-eyed leader said nothing, eyeing the black-shafted arrow protruding through the man's left calf. It was a very painful wound indeed. He needed no further explanation and replied in an accusing tone, "They got the better of you, I see."

The man was quick to reply. "N-no, lord Zephrion, you are mistaken. I-" he was cut off as a firm hand grasped the collar of his breastplate. His face was now inches away from the one named Zephrion. His eyes were forced to look into the other man's. His heart beat rapidly as he stared into the slit-like pupils of his master. Wait, _slit-like_?

"Ameil,"Zephrion said in a startlingly calm voice. "You are my most _capable_ _assassin_, are you not?" The tone was uncompromising and dangerous. Panic stricken, Ameil nodded. Zephrion took that as a sign to continue.

"Then how is it you were _in_capable to _assassinate_ the mere one girl?"

The vise-like grip on Ameil's collar became increasingly restricting on his windpipe. He found it difficult to breath, and was quick to respond before he was unable to.

"I had come close to k-killing the girl, but she had s-somehow sensed my p-presence." He vaguely remembered sighting and firing on his target from the high position in the cliffs he had acquired. He aimed for the head, a one-hit kill. His heavy crossbow made no sound as the silver bolt flew through the air. He had smiled in his mind's eye as he knew the shot had no chance of missing the un_suspecting_ target. But then the un_expected_ happened. The girl had ducked to the ground, dodging under the missile, unscathed. The details all went downhill from there. Ameil's mind was blurry from the pain and lack of oxygen.

Zephrion released his grip on his subject, letting him fall to the ground, gasping for breath. When Ameil looked up, Zephrion was still towering above him. Only he had a razor sharp dagger in his right hand, examining it casually. But there was nothing casual about it. The slit-like pupils pulsed fiercely.

Ameil felt the cold steel press lightly into the soft skin of his throat. It wasn't enough to draw blood, but the message was clear.

"Assassinate Lucy Heartfilia. Those were my instructions. Now tell me, did you _follow_ my instructions?" Zephrion questioned. His voice was soft and Ameil had to strain to hear the words.

"I t-tried, master," Ameil shakily replied.

Zephrion grinned wickedly at the man's arrogance. It almost amused him. _Almost_.

"Tried?" Zephrion spoke the word as if it were foreign to him. "I require results. Futile efforts mean nothing to me." He bent low over his subject to where he spoke clearly into his ear. "And do you know what I do to those who are useless to me?"

Ameil didn't get a chance to respond. There was a flash of crimson and the assassin's body sagged to the ground. Zephrion cleaned his dagger of the blood on his victim's clothes, feeling no remorse.

He sighed outwardly. He knew if he wanted the job done, he would have to turn to… _them_.

Oh, yes. _Them_.

Zephrion carefully stepped over the fallen body and crossed the room in one fluid movement. The camp's usual busy energy seemed to die as he stepped outside the large pavilion. The people made way for him as he crossed through the camp, bowing to him as he passed. Not one of them looked up to meet his gaze. For respect or fear, he couldn't tell. As he reached the farthest end of the camp, he swiftly and confidently strode into a nearby pavilion.

The tent flap closed behind him as he sized up its occupants. Four shadowed figures lay prone around the room, their eyes passing over him as he entered. The interior was too dark to make out their features. Zephrion smiled, more to himself than to those in front of him. He could feel their magical energies radiating with power. They were certainly a force to be reckoned with.

"Give them a run for their money. And don't let them leave this country alive."

There was a brief shimmer in the air as the four shadows vanished in an instant.

_The hunt was on._

* * *

A long silence stretched on after Erza concluded the events of the attack in the forest to Natsu and Gray. Their jaws dropped at the end of the tale.

"Whoa whoa whoa," Natsu said. "You mean the guy just… just up and vanished!"

Erza nodded. She tossed the black cloak that the attacker had left behind to him and he examined it closely. Gray did likewise with the silver-tipped crossbow.

Next to her Lucy was wearing her gale-force-reading-glasses; a magic item that enables the wearer to read two to thirty-two times as fast as normal, while flipping through the pages of a book she held on her lap. Natsu recognized it as the same book he had looked at earlier in her apartment that same morning. Her eyes darted back and forth quickly as she skimmed over the strange writing. '_Makes sense to her'_ Natsu thought gruffly. "What are you looking for, Lucy?" he asked her.

He received no response at first. Without looking up, Lucy said "Information on dark guilds. I was hoping to find some kind of lead with who that guy was associated with."

"But… your sure this guy was part of a dark guild?" Erza asked. She was confused. As far as she could tell, their attacker seemed like an ordinary bandit from afar. Sure, he had used transportation magic, but it was a common ability to pass on. So why did Lucy seem to suspect he was a black one?

Lucy held up one of the heavy crossbow bolts she had recovered and held it up to eye level for the others to see.

Natsu stared blankly at it for a couple seconds. "Um, yeah. It's a crossbow bolt. Even I can comprehend THAT MUCH."

"I wouldn't be so sure," Gray snickered. Natsu glared at him, but a warning look from Erza was enough a message for them to drop the matter.

"I'm not saying I agree with Natsu or anything," Erza said. "But what are we supposed to be looking at exactly?"

Lucy passed the tool to her. "Look here. See that symbol?" She indicated the small engraving with her index finger. Realization suddenly dawned. The engraving was hardly noticeable unless the light hit it at the right angle. Along the top end of the bolt, a small octagonal shape was carved. The lines extended along the edge of the octagon, giving it a web-like appearance. Inside the shape was the image of a serpent eye. Erza didn't recognize the emblem at all.

"Who d'you think it belongs to?" she asked Lucy. At her question Lucy resumed flipping through the pages of her book. As she reached the back cover, she sighed.

"Who knows. But I have a feeling we haven't seen the last of these guys, whoever they are." She closed her book with a snap as she said the last sentence.

A long silence endured as each of them processed the turn of events. It was a lot to take in. Erza glanced at the night sky. Judging from the moon's position, she estimated they had a little over 7 hours until sunrise.

Erza stood up and addressed the small group as they looked at her expectantly. They had come to see Erza as the group's leader in both rank and skill. "I think we should take turns on watch tonight. Just to be on the safe side. I'll take first watch." At the others nods, she moved to a position where she could see the roadside and the rocky outcrop that was the cliffs.

As the three of them prepared the small camp, Natsu walked over to Erza uncertainly. He shuffled his feet awkwardly.

"Something on your mind?" Erza asked pointedly. She wasn't one to beat around the bush, as some might say.

"Well, have you noticed Lucy as of lately has been acting… differently?" Natsu asked uncertainly. He missed the laughing, childlike Lucy he had come to know. Now she was serious and grim-faced. Her wardrobe had changed drastically as well, he noted.

Erza sighed. So he had noticed it, too. "Think about it from Lucy's perspective," she said metaphorically. At Natsu's confused expression, she gave it to him straight. "She thinks she's the weak link."

Natsu started at that but Erza held up a hand to silence him. "Think about it, Natsu. We're supposedly 'the strongest team in Fairy Tail', right?" He nodded. They had never really agreed to the nickname, but eventually it had stuck. Erza continued. "So I think she believes she's the weakest member and feels like a burden or something."

"But that's-"

"-not true? Yeah, we know that. But I don't think she does." She jerked her head in Lucy's direction.

"Have you talked to-"

"-her about this?" Erza finished for him again. "No, I haven't. I was thinking maybe you could talk some sense into her. You two tend to get along pretty well."

Natsu considered the idea. He might just try it out. He nodded at Erza gratefully. "Thank-"

"-you?"

"Stop interrupting me, dammit!"

* * *

**Things are really heating up, yeah? Zephrion has sent out **_**them**_**. But who is **_**them**_**? And what's in store for our Fairy Tail team on the road to Kelvin?**

**FIND OUT IN CHAPTER 5!**

_**P.S.**_** Sorry for taking so long to update. This chapter took longer to write than I expected with final exams going on at school. I don't know how long it'll take for me to write the next chapter, but I'll try my best!**

**Note: I had to solve a small spelling error that had been bugging me for some time, but now it's fixed. Sorry bout' that. :-/**


	5. The Solitary Desert

**I do not own Fairy Tail. If I did, I probably wouldn't be sitting here at my computer writing this, now would I? ;-)**

* * *

**Chapter 5**

"**The Solitary Desert"**

The small party headed out early morning. The sunlight was just touching over the tops of the trees when they had packed up camp and moved on. Insects and wildlife were a buzz of energy in the still silence. Already the team noticed the vegetation gradually begin to dwindle as they edged closer and closer to the hot desert region that lay beyond the natural obstacle that was the western mountains. It would be another two days journey from their current position. It was three days after the group had been attacked.

Judging from Lucy's map, they were at the round, curved base of the rock formation, gradually slopping to the north. The path was gone now, replaced by rocky terrain. Erza had brought along desert cloaks, capable at keeping the heat at bay and providing protection from the sun's rays as it bore down on them. They each dawned one now. Gray had refused the apparel, content with his spiritual ice cloak. He needed it more than the others, after all.

Natsu and Lucy hung back from the other three by a few meters. As the two walked, Natsu thought about what Erza had said nights before.

"_I was thinking maybe you could talk some sense into her. You two tend to get along pretty well."_

As true as that might be, he couldn't find the right words. The best he could do was point out the obvious, and that didn't help much considering it was _obvious!_

Erza, Gray and Happy came to a stop ahead of them. Erza waited until Lucy and Natsu came level with them.

Natsu groaned loudly. "Don't tell me we're taking another break! Can't we just get on with it already?"

Gray shook his head. "You're so stupid. Look over there, dimwit."

Natsu turned his head to look in the direction Gray had indicated, and his jaw dropped.

They had reached the Solitary Desert.

* * *

"Erza," Natsu asked, a little breathlessly, "Where do you hope to find Kelvin?"

They were traveling at a constant pace to the north, eager to reach the borders of Kelvin as soon as possible. The better time they made the more they could catch up on the current situation since their last detour of the area.

There was a long, thin band of orange creeping above the low hills in the east as they walked inland. The cool breeze faded away as they got farther from the coastland. The clear days and nights in the desert allowed heat to enter and escape into the atmosphere. Nights were surprisingly cold while the days became hot and searing.

"Best intelligence we have is that it's on the Solitary Desert, beyond the Iron Flutes. We'll scout around that area and see what we can find out. Although getting the information is easier said than done." Erza said, in answer to Natsu's question.

"What on earth is an Iron Flute?" Natsu asked. "And why do they call it the Solitary Desert anyway?"

"The Solitary Desert is a vast flat area—very few landmarks, mainly covered in sand dunes," Lucy told him. "The wind always seems to be blowing, no matter what time of year it is. It's a dismal, depressing place and the Iron Flutes are the most dismal part of it."

"But what are…" Will began, but Lucy had only paused briefly. "The Iron Flutes? Nobody really knows. They're a circle of standing iron rocks built by the ancients, smack in the middle of the windiest part of the desert.

"Nobody had ever worked out their original purpose but they're arranged in such a way that the wind is deflected around the circle, and through a series of holes in the iron. They create a constant keening noise, although why anyone thought they sounded like flutes is beyond me. The sound is eerie and discordant and you can hear it from miles away. After a few minutes, it sets your teeth on edge—it goes on and on for hours."

Natsu said nothing. The idea of a dismal, windswept desert and iron rocks that emitted a nonstop keening wail seemed very unpleasant at the least.

Happy clapped him on the shoulder encouragingly. "Cheer up," he said. "Nothing's ever a bad as it sounds, right?"

Natsu wasn't so sure.

* * *

Lucy was right, Natsu thought, it was a vast, depressing place. The featureless ground stretched out mile after mile before them. The wind itself almost seemed to be a living presence. It rubbed on their nerves, constantly blowing, sending grains of sand flying into their faces. He was grateful for the hood of his tan desert cloak.

"Now you can see why they call it the Solitary Desert," Gray said. "When you walk out into this damned wind, you feel as if you're the only person on earth."

It was true, Natsu thought. He felt small and insignificant against the emptiness of the desert. And with the feel of insignificance came the feeling of impotence. The wasteland they were trekking across seemed to give hints at the presence of arcane forces—forces far greater than the norm. Even Happy, jolly and innocent, seemed affected by the heavy, depressing atmosphere. Only Erza seemed unchanged, remaining grim and taciturn as ever.

Gradually, as they walked, Natsu became aware of a disquieting sensation. Something was lurking, just outside the range of his conscious perception. Something that made him feel uneasy. He couldn't isolate it or tell where it was coming from or what form it took. He squinted his eyes, scanning the featureless horizon in the hope that he might see the source of it all. Lucy noticed the movement.

"You've noticed them," she said. "It's the iron."

And now that Lucy said it, he became aware of the sound—faint and continuous. Because now he could isolate it. It was an unmelodic series of notes, all being played at once but creating a hard, grating tone that unsettled his mind.

They rode through the afternoon, never seeming to advance across the featureless desert. With each pace they took, the horizons behind and in front of them seemed to neither recede nor draw closer. It was as if they were making time in an empty world. The constant grating sound of the Iron Flutes was ever present, slowly growing stronger as they traveled. It was the only sign that they were making progress. The hours passed and Natsu found it no easier to bear. He ground his teeth in an effort to distract himself from the noise, but found it difficult to do so. As the sun began to sink behind the western rim, Erza came to a stop.

"We'll rest for the night," she announced. "It's almost impossible to remain on a constant course in the dark. Without any land features, we could easily wind up going in circles."

Gratefully, the others nodded agreement. Fit as they were, the hours spent at a forced pace had made them bone weary. Natsu began looking for something to make a fire of. Gray, realizing what he had in mind, shook his head.

"Not this time, Dragon Breath," he said with a hint of sarcasm. "We'd make ourselves obvious and we have no idea who might be watching. Sending up fireworks doesn't exactly say 'Pay no attention to the five foreigners!'"

Natsu paused, extinguishing the flame he had built up in his right hand. "If I wasn't so tired, I'd punch your lights out, Snowflake."

Gray merely smirked. "Likewise."

"Until I _know_ we have been spotted," Erza said, "We'll assume we haven't. So, no fire."

Natsu grumbled reluctantly. "It's just I'd happily kill somebody for a hot meal."

"Light a fire to do so," Erza told him, "and you just might end up having to do just that."

* * *

They saw the Iron Flutes by midmorning—a rusted small circle of iron monoliths that stood at the top of a rise in a sand dune. The group was content to go no closer, but even at a considerable distance the depressing sound was now louder than ever, ebbing and flowing on the ride of the wind.

"Next flute player I meet," said Gray with grim humor, "I'm going to split his lip for him."

The traveled on, the miles passing beneath their feet, hour after hour, one the same as the next, with nothing new to see and always with the faint howl of the flutes' tone at their back, keeping their nerves on edge.

A figure suddenly rose out from the sand some fifty meters away from them. With the sun's rays shining into their faces, he was a mere black spec on the bland landscape. He seemed to glare at them through mad eyes for several seconds.

Natsu had barely recovered from the shock of his sudden appearance when the man was off, bent double and running through the sand, seeming to sink into it. Within seconds, he had disappeared. Erza was about to run off in pursuit, but she stopped. The sword she had instinctively drawn remained by her side. Lucy and Gray were also at the ready, their instincts every bit as sharp as Erza's. Natsu held the fire he had conjured up, looking curiously at Erza next to him.

Erza shrugged. "May mean nothing," she said. "Or maybe he's off to spread the word of our arrival. But we can hardly kill him on suspicion alone."

Natsu let out a bark of laughter, more to release the tension he felt as a result of the man's unexpected appearance.

"I suppose there's no difference," he said, "whether we find the enemy or they find us."

"Aye!"

Erza's gaze fixed on him for a moment, without any sign of answering humor.

"Believe me, Natsu," she said, "there's a big difference."

* * *

**Here it is folks, chapter 5! This is the shortest chapter I've written so far, but I wanted to set the scene for what is to come.**

**And I have good news: School is out and it's summer vacation! That's right, yesterday was the last day of the school year for me. I'll have more time to work on this story over the summer, so I have that to look forward to.**

**Thanks so much for all the reviews I've gotten, and be sure to check back for the next chapter!**


	6. The Fissure

**I do not own Fairy Tail. If I did, I probably wouldn't be sitting here at my computer writing this, now would I? ;-)**

* * *

**Chapter 6**

"**The Fissure"**

The glaring eye of the sun had slid up over the rim of the earth now—a vast red ball rising into the sky. It interested Natsu that at this time of the day it was impossible to discern the sun's movement. One moment it was just broaching the horizon, the next it was soaring freely. And already its heat was starting to bite, dispelling the remaining chill of the dark hours.

"Don't like the look of that," Gray muttered. Natsu looked at him curiously and the ice wizard pointed toward the sun.

"When you see a red sunrise like that, you start looking for cover. It often means a storm. But not always," he added, somewhat reassuringly. Natsu however, didn't feel reassured.

They had abandoned the forced march pace now and walked slowly through the deep sand. Behind them, the sound of the Flutes began to fade a little, much to everyone's relief.

Lucy suddenly halted, causing the others to do the same and glance curiously at her.

"What's up?" Erza asked. Lucy tilted her head to the side as if that would help her listen. Her eyes had even drifted out of focus.

"Hello, Earth to Lucy! Anybody home in there?" Natsu said, waving his hand in front of her face. She gave no indication that she had heard him.

"Something's not right," she said slowly. "The wind has stopped."

With a start, they realized what she had said was true. The wind, which had been blowing only a moment before, was silenced and stilled. It was… uncanny. Eerie. Unnatural.

Suddenly, there was a deafening rumble that sent the five stumbling to the ground. A giant fissure had split open right in front of their path, sending the earth shaking and vibrating violently beneath them. Everything seemed to be suctioned into the giant crack, sending sand swirling into their faces as they got pulled into the vortex of wind. The Iron Flutes melody was louder than ever now, sending their teeth rattling and a high pitched wail into their ears. The sound went through Lucy like physical pain. That's when she realized it _was_ physical pain. Her ears were bleeding with the horrible intensity of the volume. She was surprised she wasn't deaf yet. Around her, the others were enduring the same ordeal.

The five felt their feet leave the ground as the force of the wind sucked them toward the fissure. Lucy came to a decision in her mind that this was definitely **not natural**. She sensed an outside influence in this mishap, but she was too distracted to care.

In one final act of desperation, she lashed her arm out at something, barely managing to grab onto the edge of the fissure just as she was about to fall down into it. Grains of sand scratched and scraped her face as the wind hit her head-on.

Lucy didn't register the hands that had grabbed onto her in an attempt to stop themselves from falling into the depths of the unknown. All she was focused on was to hang on for dear life. Her fingers bled from the effort.

"Whatever you do, _**don't let go!**_" Natsu yelled over the roar of the wind. But she had reached her limit. She felt her fingers slip as she was on the brink of unconsciousness.

_Forgive me…_

They plunged into darkness. Above the surface, the fissure closed, and all was silent.

* * *

Pain. That was the first thing Lucy registered before her eyes had even opened. Her body stung and burned as she emerged from the sand she was buried beneath. As she emerged, the sand fell down from her form, renewing the burning sensation. She gave a cry of pain as her hand gripped her injured shoulder. It was more than likely broken by now.

With difficulty, she pushed herself onto her hands and knees, breathing heavily. The ground burned her hands and she didn't have the strength to rise. Her vision swam and tilted as she tried to focus it and her ears were a continuous ringing. Her mind was foggy with the details of what had happened. All she knew was that she had failed to hang on, and everyone had suffered because of the fact. She felt weak and hopeless at the prospect.

But what _was_ that? The fissure had definitely been conjured up by something or _someone_. Did it have something to do with the mysterious man in the desert?

With her mind a buzz of questions, she didn't acknowledge the figure standing a few paces away from her disheveled form. She assumed it to be Erza, Natsu, or Gray, but as she glanced up for the first time, her hopes sank as quickly as they had risen. The sun's rays were directly in her eyes as she looked up at the towering figure.

"Who—"

* * *

"Arrryaaahhh!" Natsu burst out of the sand, landing cleanly next to a second sand lump. The black furrowed hair told him it was Gray.

"Hey, Ice Cube! Wake up!" Natsu grabbed his hair and roughly pulled his face out of the sand. Gray blinked several times before his vision cleared.

"Nat…su..? What're yo—" He got no further as Natsu abruptly dropped his head back into the sand.

"Good. You're awake. Now help me find the others."

"I'm all ri'. Thanks fer askin'," Gray's annoyed voice was muffled by the sand pressed into his face.

Natsu looked at their surroundings. They appeared to still be in the desert, but where exactly in the desert, he had no idea. He and Gray seemed to be the only two here.

But where were Erza, Lucy, and Happy? He last remembered falling, and then… nothing.

Gray emerged from the sand, dusting himself off. His face fell as he took in the tattered remains of the ice cloak. He had a small hope that Lucy might know a way to fix it, so he folded it up as best he could and put it into his backpack lying in the sand next to him. He glanced around.

"Hey, where is everybody?"

Natsu shook his head in disbelief. "You got sand in your ears? I just said I didn't know."

Gray snorted. "I just swallowed enough sand to make a beach in my stomach, so it wouldn't surprise me if I had sand _in my ears_!"

Natsu's angry face was just inches away from Gray's. "You wanna go?"

"I'd be my pleasur—"

At Gray's surprised look, Natsu turned around to see what had caught his rival's eye. He didn't expect _this_ however.

"Y-You're…"

* * *

"Lucy! Natsu! Hey, Gray! You guys here?"

Erza was walking in circles, calling out to the empty land around her. Where was everybody? They couldn't have gotten separated so easily. As her memory recalled, they had all fallen the same direction, so why were they nowhere in sight?

_Fallen…_

If they had really fallen in the fissure, they would be _beneath _the surface. So how did she end up _on_ the surface? It made no logical sense in terms of science. But in terms of _magic_, she had a feeling they had been targeted from the beginning. But by who?

She paced back and forth, sword in hand. If something had happened to them, she would be held responsible. If they were dead…

No. No, they aren't dead, she thought. She just needed to find them as soon as possible. But where to start?

Suddenly, the sand a few meters to her left began to bubble and swirl, rising gradually. She took up her fighting position, ready to fight at the first sign of danger. The sand continued to rise, beginning to take shape. Erza thought of simply slashing away at the sand, but thought better of it. She needed to see exactly who was behind all of this.

The outline of a figure was visible now in the growing sand. At last the form was complete, but Erza was caught off guard by what it was.

"N-No way!"

* * *

**Muhahahaha! Cliff hangers! I'm so evil. :-]**

**So… yeah. Again, short chapter, but I wanted to build the mood for the upcoming battles. That's right! The next few chapters are most likely going to be battle scenes.**

**Exactly who are our heroes facing? Will they manage to find each other in the Solitary Desert? And who exactly is behind all of this (Okay, now this just sounds like a Pokémon ending)? Be sure to check back for future chapters!**


	7. Lucy vs Killen

**I do not own Fairy Tail. If I did, I probably wouldn't be sitting here at my computer writing this, now would I? ;-)**

* * *

**Chapter 7**

"**Lucy vs. Killen"**

"Who… are… you?" Lucy croaked. With the light of the sun directly in her face, it was impossible to make out the stranger's features. One thing she did know however, was that this man, whoever he was, was _**not **_an ally. The stranger stepped toward her now, blocking the sun from her eyes. Black dots danced her vision for a moment as her pupils dilated to the change in light.

The man was clad entirely in black exoskeleton, a type of garment made of cloth that was strong and durable. It stretched tight over his body, showing a heavyset figure with muscles honed by years of harsh endurances. A tabard displaying a gray, web-like image with a serpent's eye covered his chest. A black veil covered his face, with a rectangular slit cut out for the eyes.

_The eyes_. His eyes were startling white, with nothing but a black slits for pupils. He was equipped with two deadly looking scimitars. They lay in their sheaths, forming an X pattern across his backside. There was an air of confidence about the newcomer; giving the feeling he could handle anything his opponents could throw at him.

The symbol on the tabard was what intrigued Lucy the most. It was the same symbol that was on the crossbow bolt before!

Lucy rose shakily to her feet and backed away a few paces in an attempt to keep her distance for the deadly looking assailant.

"W-Who are you?" she repeated her earlier question, this time with an edge to her voice.

The pupils pulsed in response to her question. He, however, felt no need to give a direct answer. "You know who I am." The voice was deep and resonance, powerful and well-modulated. The man chuckled. It was a rich, deep sound. Despite his threatening appearance, if Lucy had simply heard his voice behind a closed door, she would have assumed him to be easy to like in terms of conversational matters. If he was indeed a killer, his tone was almost pitiful. It gave off a mocking gesture, as if to say _"Your life is a book to me. Let us skip to the ending, shall we?"_

Lucy scoffed. Clearly the heat was beginning to get to her head. "If I _knew_ who you were, would I even have bothered to ask that question?"

The man seemed intrigued by the question, tilting his head slightly and narrowing his eyes. "I suppose not." He paused briefly. "You are perhaps more observant than I had originally thought, _Lucy Heartfilia_."

Lucy started at that. How did this man know her name? She was beginning to think she might have, by some chance, met this guy before. He seemed to know her, at least. But she clearly didn't know him.

"They call me Killen." Again, there was that hint of confidence.

_Well that name certainly fits you,_ Lucy thought smugly.

"No matter," Killen said. "I have to been given orders to terminate you." He sighed. "A pity. You could've been useful to the Master." He sounded bored at the prospect.

There were two resounding _SHING!_s of the scimitars being drawn from their scabbards. The weapons were at least a meter in length each. The hilts were embroidered with black onyx stones threaded into the leather. The sunlight glinted off the polished metal. It would've been a pretty picture, Lucy thought, if only they hadn't been directed at her.

"So, shall we get on with it then?" The voice sent a shiver down her shine in spite of the hot atmosphere.

She spared a glance at the sky above her.

"Why _me_?" she asked the heavens. Naturally, they didn't respond.

* * *

Killen dashed forward with surprising agility and aimed an overhead slash at Lucy. Lucy jumped backward and felt the blade slice the air in front of her a fraction of a second later. _He's fast,_ she thought. She didn't think she would have enough time to bring forth one of her spirits. _This is bad. This is really really bad!_ Lucy vaguely wished that one of her friends were here to help her take this guy out, then immediately wished she hadn't. This was the only way she could get stronger. She didn't want to always rely on others to help her solve her problems. In her mind she came to a quick decision. All the times they had been there to support her, then it's time she supported them!

With newfound confidence, Lucy quickly drew her whip from her belt, bringing it up in both hands just in time to parry a second downward stroke. She gasped as she felt the shock of the stroke up to her broken shoulder, numbing the area from the devastating force of the blow. Lucy struggled to throw the scimitar off the surface of her whip. With his free weapon hand, Killen stepped forward and brought the pommel of the second scimitar slamming into her side against her ribs. The hit winded her and Killen promptly shoved her away with a charge from his shoulder.

Lucy struggled to her feet, breathing heavily. _Dammit! I can't focus on both of his hands at the same time without leaving an opening._ She glanced down at her whip. A large dent had been fractured into the surface where she had warded off the blow. Much more of this and the whip would be sliced into two, she realized. Her mouth with dry at the thought of facing that deadly scimitar with no defense. Sure, she still had her keys, but to take the time to summon would be her downfall.

Then Killen was attacking again and Lucy had no choice but to block with her whip. He was simply too fast! The material split further under the assault and the scimitar bit deeply into it. For a second, it stuck there and there was a desperate tug-of-war between the two, but Lucy was forced to extract one of her hands from her weapon in desperation as Killen's second blow came around to her again. She gave a cry of pain as the blow struck her lower arm, slicing deep into the flesh and sending blood trickling down her right arm. Killen jerked his weapon free and danced lightly back a few paces. Under the veil, a sly smile crept its way onto his features. It was only a matter of time now.

Lucy held her arm as it continued to bleed freely. A burning sensation arose to the wound, sending her whole arm into a boiling pain. Her broken shoulder flared and she cried out, falling to her knees. This was no ordinary wound. Then her eyes lit up as she realized what it was: _Poison_!

Lucy slowly and shakily got to her feet. She knew that if she were to lower her guard for even a moment she would be dead in an instant. This Killen character was fast, agile and strong, merciless in taking a life. She had to do her best to keep her distance from him. But she couldn't possibly keep this up forever! The force behind his blows were growing increasingly forceful, and one solid hit to a vital spot would be life threatening. The best she could do at the moment was to try and buy as much time as possible to try and figure out a weakness in his defense.

Suddenly, Killen's right-hand weapon changed. There was a puff of smoke and in the scimitar's place was a heavy ball and chain. The weapon was massive and ugly, a thick oak handle some half a meter long, bound every ten centimeters with iron straps to reinforce it. Then the long iron chain, heavy and thick, attached to the fearsome spiked ball at its end.

_So he can requip too,_ Lucy thought. It seemed Killen had more tricks up his sleeve just when you thought you had seen it all. His thick wrist had the huge strength necessary to flick the mace and chain back and forward, so the spiked ball came flying straight at Lucy. As he did so, he stepped into Lucy, forcing the young girl to spring backward as she brought up her whip to ward off the blow.

Erza had once told her that a mace and chain would hit like a battering ram. To Lucy, it felt as if a house had fallen on her. Never before had she felt such a massive, crushing force. Not even when she had been slammed around by Gajeel and Phantom Lord some time ago. Lucy grunted in surprise and was nearly caught by Killen's follow-up; a flailing sideways attack that slammed into her right arm again, as she managed to lower it just in time. Again, Lucy backed away.

She sensed that Killen had hoped that his unexpected lightning attacks would finish matters in total. He swung again, this time an overhead blow. But Lucy had anticipated that move, and stepped lightly to the side so that the iron ball slammed into the sand. She quickly lashed her whip at Killen's forearm. The whip did little but bruise him and made him jerk back hurriedly in surprise. It was far from a telling blow.

As the fight dragged on, Lucy could feel the effects of the poison beginning to take a toll on her body. Her vision was blurry and disoriented, squinting as she tried to force her eyes to focus on the blurred figure of Killen. Her limbs felt leaden and clumsy as she swayed on the spot. The heat aided the feeling as she slowly became dehydrated and light-headed. She realized what poor condition she was in.

Lucy decided that her best chance lay in making sudden attacks. She lunged forward, her right foot stamping out toward Killen, flicking her whip at the fuzzily seen mass before her.

It might have worked, had she not been slowed down by the effect of the poison. Killen was expecting his smaller opponent to withdraw and wait for him to make a move. He was surprised by the sudden attack. The end of the whip struck him in the center of his body, but he managed to twist so that his breastplate deflected it, sending it skating across his ribs.

Lucy continued the forward rush, a little more clumsily than normal, spinning to her left so that she brought up her battered arm to ward off the counterstroke from Killen. She was just in time; the backhand cut from the scimitar clanged heavily into her arm. It was a solid slow, but nowhere near as bad as the hammering mace strokes from Killen.

She shuffled backward, straining to see. Her eyes watered, and Killen was a shapeless mass moving toward her. She saw the vague outline of a weapon arm rising and threw up her arm again. Killen's scimitar slammed into it again, and Lucy, acting purely on instinct, lashed back at the man with her whip.

Killen, knowing that Lucy had been successfully poisoned by his scimitar, was expecting no opposition at all and was overconfident. His scimitar was poorly positioned and a fraction too low to take Lucy's counter. The heavy end caught the weapon's crosspiece, deflected and clanged solidly off Killen's veil, leaving a severe blow to the head. Lucy felt the satisfying shock of solid contact up her damaged arm.

She saw the fuzzy lumbering shape that was Killen move back, becoming more difficult to see as he merged into the background.

Killen, for his part, shook his head to clear it and stood like a huge, angry bull, glaring at the girl before him. The thin padding to the top of his veil had absorbed some of the blow he had just taken, but even so, it had shaken him. He was furious now. He had been told he would take minimal resistance while he carried out the Master's bidding. He grunted in fury and charged at Lucy.

Lucy heard the grunt but, virtually blinded as she was, she was too slow registering the fact that Killen was coming at her. Too later, she realized what was happening and tried to defend herself.

At that moment, Killen rammed his shoulder into her chest, with all the force of his charging body behind it. Lucy, already beginning to move backward, was hurled off her feet and crashed onto her back on the sand, her whip flying from her hand. Lucy, winded and almost blind, saw the out-of-focus figure towering over her. She sensed rather than saw that Killen was raising his scimitar, point down, holding it in both hands to drive it into Lucy's body.

So this was how it was going to happen, she thought. She felt a vague sense of disappointment that she had let Fairy Tail down. She resolved to keep her eyes open as she died, in spite of the fact she could see almost nothing of her killer. That was annoying, somehow. She wanted to see.

She wished she weren't going to die while she was annoyed. It seemed such a petty emotion.

* * *

**More cliffhangers! There's a lot more to come, guys! We're only just getting started on the action. Don't worry, in time I'll get to the battles with the other characters.**

**Lucy is at the mercy of Killen! What will happen? Will this story see a character death? Or will a likely saviour save the day? Find out in the next chapter!**

**Thanks so much for all of your kind reviews! I'm so pleased that so many people are enjoying this story! :)**

**Note: I did go back and fix some grammer errors, so sorry about that earlier. :(**


	8. Leo of the Lion Palace

**I do not own Fairy Tail. If I did, I probably wouldn't be sitting here at my computer writing this, now would I? ;-)**

* * *

**Chapter 8**

"**Leo of the Lion Palace"**

Killen lifted the weapon above his head at full stretch, preparing to lunge his razor sharp scimitar into his victim's form. He smiled to himself. _The deed… shall be done… my Master._

"DIE!" Killen gave a mighty roar, putting all his strength into the downward stab that would be the killing blow to end Lucy Heartfilia's life.

Suddenly Killen found himself struggling to bring the weapon down. The blade hovered inches away from the girl's torso. Killen gave a second effort, but to no avail. Surely the skirmish hadn't exhausted this much of his energy. A thought dawned on him, and he spared a glance over his shoulder and was surprised at what his eyes met.

The newcomer was tall and lanky, adorning casual attire that seemed out of place with the situation and environment yet fitting with his personality. Like Killen, there was an air of confidence about him. Although this time, the feeling was much more fierce and concentrated; dangerous even. He seemed to be giving little to no effort as he maintained an iron grasp on the hilt of the scimitar to stop Killen's attempted assault. But Killen hadn't even sensed his approach. He had been quite certain that he had successfully separated his target from her companions.

"Wh-Who the hell are you?" Killen stuttered. He squared his feet and tried to jerk his weapon free. His hands shook with the effort, but it wouldn't budge a fraction. The newcomer smiled coldly at his futile attempt.

"If you're smart, then should know better than to enter the lion's den." His voice was calm and collected, but a silent threat lingered behind the words.

"L-Leo…" Lucy's weak voice was nearly inaudible. The poison was beginning to numb her body, and she found it difficult to force the words from her throat. Her vision hadn't improved, and she was surprised to find herself still alive. At first she was confused at Killen's hesitation, but as she recognized Leo's (really Loke's) voice, her spirits lifted considerably. Perhaps she wouldn't die after all. Although the poison could very well do the same thing.

For the first time since he had passed through his gate, Loke took in her appearance and was horrified at the state she was in. Her right arm was bent at an awkward angle and she sported numerous other wounds. Her skin was pale and clammy. She had a nasty cut on her forehead and her hairline was sticky with blood. Lucy struggled to rise, but she looked dazed. Her eyes were glassy.

A deep boiling rage overtook Leo's emotions. With a roar–fitting for a lion-, he grasped the hilt in both hands and pivoted, hurling both weapon and wielder into the sand with a muffled thud.

Leo was at Lucy's side in an instant. "Lucy, are you okay? Lucy?"

"I c-can't… control….. my magic..." Lucy stammered. Her breath was coming in ragged and shallow gasps. What she said was true. Normally, wizards could sense the extent of their remaining energy. But Lucy was finding it difficult to sense any remaining. It was if the poison was suctioning it from her body.

Gingerly, Leo took her undamaged arm and draped it across his shoulders, hauling her gently to her feet. She stood swaying, grasping Leo for support. And if things couldn't get any worse, her vision hadn't improved in the slightest. It was quite the opposite of improving really.

"Leo," she whispered, "we have a problem. I c-can't focus my eyes."

"What d'you mean? What happened here? And who's he?" he replied in a hushed tone. He glanced quickly to where Killen was slowly beginning to rise. Leo's blow hadn't stunned him for long.

Lucy gasped for breath before replying shakily. "I-I don't know. The others… got separated… poison… Killen… too strong…" She couldn't find the strength to form her sentences right, and her sight once again faltered. Unconsciousness was on the edges of her vision now.

Leo's mind raced as she said _poison_ and _Killen_. He was more concerned about the _poison_ part though. That explained a lot about her current condition. "Don't worry, Lucy. I'll find a way to put this guy down."

Leo's voice seemed to be coming from a far way away, but she understood what he had said. A small flicker of doubt flared to life inside of her. She didn't want him getting hurt for her sake, but she knew there was no way she could continue on fighting in her state, and she found herself leaning more and more heavily on Leo for support as her body succumbed to its injuries.

Leo could feel her giving out, and gently set her down again. He stood some five meters in front of her, acting as a barrier between Lucy and the character named Killen. Killen's skin, what could be seen of it above the veil, was dark brown—burned by years of desert sun and wind. Although the veil covered his lower face, it was obvious that the nose was prominent. His eyes were deep-set and hooded under heavy brows and thick eyebrows. They were slit-like and deep brown, almost black. They were the only feature that Leo could make out, yet he knew he would recognize Killen again if he saw him without the veil. The eyes were cold, black and pitiless. There was no trace of mercy or warmth in them. They were a killer's eyes.

Leo had heard rumors of the "Black-Veiled Outsiders, the Forgotten." Now he understood the reference.

"Sorry. But I don't believe we've met." Leo said, showing no sign of humor.

Killen grinned wickedly. "Then allow me to introduce myself to you."

Killen launched himself at the newcomer. There was a puff of smoke and his weapons vanished, only to be replaced with two strikers.

The strikers are very unique weapons. They were brass cylinders, as long as the breadth of his hand with a lead-weighted knob at either end. When held in a closed fist, the strikers turned the fist into a solid, unyielding weapon, with the weight lending extra force and authority to a punch. They were a force to be reckoned with in a hand-to-hand fight. Since Leo had no weapons of his own, it seemed Killen had the upper hand.

Killen swung a backhanded strike, aiming to bring the striker down hard onto the man's skull, just behind the left ear. A solid blow to that point would end the fight right then and there, but Leo wasn't going to be taken down so easily.

There was a slapping noise of metal hitting flesh. But Killen's triumphant smile faded to a scowl as he realized his opponent had caught the striker in his palm, stalling the attack. The blow had no effect on him directly, only causing some slight numbing in the area. Leo reacted simultaneously; grasping the striker and bringing it back around to hit Killen forcefully in the stomach, the air escaping from his lungs. With a shove, Leo sent him sprawling once again. He tossed the heavy cylinder up and down experimentally, testing its weight.

"Careful. Somebody could get hurt with this." Leo mocked.

Killen growled in anger as he regained his feet. He tossed the remaining striker aside with more force than necessary. "I don't need this." He clapped his hands together, interlinking his fingers over each other. Then he slowly pried them apart, a blue light illuminating his features. Lightning crackled between his two hands, sparking and buzzing as if trying to break free from an invisible prison.

Leo gasped. _H-He's a… Lightning wizard?_

Killen noticed his reaction and his grin widened. "Now for the grand finale!" He put his palms together once more, and then shoved his palms outward away from his body. Lightning coursed wildly, arcing toward the panic-stricken young man.

"DIE!"

There was a flash of blue light, and then all was silent.

* * *

**I must apologize for taking a full week to write this chapter. I've been under a lot of pressure lately to update, and I've had things going on at home. I hope you understand.**

**Uh-oh! Killen has Lucy and Leo (Loke) cornered! Will they survive?**

**I'll get into Natsu, Gray and Erza's battles soon! I hope to wrap up Lucy's part in the next chapter. And don't worry, Happy is still in the story. He comes in later. **

**Thanks for reading! Feel free to review and tell me what you think about TSoK*!**

***=The Secret of Kelvin [abbreviation]**


	9. Near Misses and Final Wishes

**I do not own Fairy Tail. If I did, I probably wouldn't be sitting here at my computer writing this, now would I? ;-)**

* * *

**Chapter 9**

"**Near Misses and Final Wishes"**

Killen narrowed his eyes as the sand settled. Where Leo had been standing was nothing more than a pile of dust and debris, black ashes coating the ground where the bolts had struck. Underneath the black veil, a sly smile found its way onto his face. _So much for him_, Killen thought smugly. _Now for the girl_. He strode confidently into the haze, the slits that were his eyes intently scanning the landscape around him for any sign of her. However, there was none.

Nothing. No sign what-so-ever. He quickened his pace, venturing past the blast radius from his lightning attack. His breathing was heavy as he continued his search. He preferred to reserve his magical energies for specific enemies who posed a threat to him. To have to use it on such… such _weaklings_ was quite rash, but no matter, he thought. He had come out victorious nonetheless.

The desert wind had cleared the haze now. The air was clear and the visibility had improved with it. Still no sign of the Lucy girl. He stood in the epicenter of the blast range now, turning in all directions. Surely she couldn't have been incinerated in the explosion. He had been very specific on focusing the charge on only the man. But there were no other beings in sight; nothing but charred sand.

A deep feeling of dread and anger and fear welled up inside of him.

Lucy Heartfilia was gone.

And he was responsible.

_I must hunt them down_, he thought with dread. _Or else Master Zephrion… will not be pleased._

* * *

Lucy emerged from the sand, and a coughing fit seized her. Her throat was dry and swollen, so it sounded more like the harsh croaking of a crow. Moments later, Virgo appeared next to her, supporting a ragged looking Leo. Parts of his clothing were blackened, but he seemed otherwise okay. Lucy gave a mental sigh of relief in seeing her friend otherwise unharmed.

It had all happened so fast. She had barely had enough time and magic to summon Virgo before Killen's lightning had struck Leo. Virgo had just enough time to burrow under the surface with the two and dig them safely out of harm's way. They now emerged several kilometers from their original location.

Lucy knew she was at her limit. Better yet, OVER her limit. She fell over onto her side, too exhausted both mentally and physically to rise again. The poison was at full effect. There was a constant pain all over her body, and it was self-inflicting torture to even breathe. As she fell, there was a clink as her keys came out of her vise-like grip. She desperately tried to grasp them again, pawing the ground with her hand, trying to reach at the fuzzy mass. It seemed to be hours, but she knew it to be only seconds; she finally managed to pick them up, fumbling for the engravings of specific keys. At last she found them, and reached her arm up shakily at the blurry figures in front of her.

"P-Princess, don-"

"Lucy, you're-"

"S-Sorry, guys," Lucy croaked and smiled weakly. "Forced c-closure."

The two spirits gave cries of protest, but the damage was done. The last thing she saw were two puffs of smoke as Leo and Virgo disappeared as she forced them back through their gates to the celestial spirit world. It took an incredible effort to force them back, but she didn't want them to be put in further danger. She knew she wouldn't hold out much longer. The pain was unbearable now, and she silently begged for it to stop.

Her wish was granted as she slipped into the comforting darkness of unconsciousness.

* * *

The bitter cold of the desert night woke her. She was facedown, shivering violently as the heat leached from her body. It wasn't fair, she thought. The blinding heat of the day and the near freezing temperatures of the night combining to rob the last vestiges of strength from her. Shivering took energy and she had none to spare.

Lucy tried to raise her head, and failed. Then, with a massive effort, she rolled over onto her back, to find herself staring up at the brilliant stars blazing down from the clear night sky. Beautiful, she thought. But strangers to her. She wanted to crane around and look to the east, where she could see the familiar constellations of Magnolia, lying low on the eastern horizon. But she didn't have the strength. She'd just have to lie here and die, watched over by strange stars who didn't know her, didn't care for her.

It was very sad, really.

There was a strange clarity to her thinking now, as if all the effort of the day, all the self-delusion, was gone and she could view her situation dispassionately. She knew she was going to die. If not tonight, then certainly tomorrow. She would never stand another day of that furnace-like heat. She would just dry up and blow away, carried on the desert wind.

It was very sad. She'd like to have cried about it but there was no moisture for tears. With her newfound clarity of thought, she felt a nagging sense of annoyance. She had let down all of the people that she cared about. All of her friends at Fairy Tail. They would be disappointed, she thought-and perhaps that was the worst aspect of this situation. Now, at this final hurdle, she felt she had let them all down and she didn't want to die knowing that they would be disappointed in her. She could bear the dying, she thought, but not the disappointment.

She wondered what had happened to Natsu and the others. She hoped that somewhere, they were all right. The moonlight shimmered off something to her side; her keys. Aquarius would be mad at her for dropping them again, she thought, and chuckled soundlessly at the mental picture. She had never known why Aquarius disapproved of her so much, but it hardly mattered now. All of her contracts would be broken anyway as she passed away. It was for the better really.

The foreign stars watch her and she watched them.

They seemed to be fading, their cold brilliance dimming. That was unusual, she thought. Usually the stars kept burning till the sun came up. She didn't realize that the stars were burning as brightly as ever. It was she who was fading. After a while, she lay still, barely breathing.

A far away voice cried out her name. Lucy thought that she might have heard it but she could never be sure. In fact, it had registered with her subconscious but she was far too gone to stir.

* * *

**Lucy: Oh, you guys can stop crying already! I'm alive. I **_**AM**_** alive, right?**

**Me: Sure you are! I just had to build the suspense up!**

**Lucy: Right, of course you did.**

**Me: …**

**Lucy: …**

**Me: *cough* *cough* Okay then, well, end of chapter 9. I'll get started on the next chapter tomorrow. Right now, I'm tired.**

**Lucy: **_**YOU'RE**_** tired? What about me? I **_**ALMOST DIED**_** Thank You very much.**

**Me: I wouldn't make you die! You're the main character!**

**Lucy: True. This story would be a whole lot more boring without me.**

**Me: Well, there's Natsu. He can go through destroying a bunch of buildings and then-**

**Lucy: I'd stop talking if I were you.**

**Me: Fine, point taken. I just wrote this whole chapter in one sitting, and it's almost midnight where I live, so **_**THAT'S**_** why I'm tired. Anyways, tune in for the next chapter.**

**Lucy: You should try almost dying. **_**Then **_**you'd be a lot more tired.**

**Me: We are **_**so**_** not having this conversation right now. -.-**

**Thanks for reading and feel free to review!**


	10. Saviors

**I do not own Fairy Tail. If I did, I probably wouldn't be sitting here at my computer writing this, now would I? ;-)**

* * *

**Chapter 10**

"**Saviors"**

Her eyes wouldn't open. But she didn't want them to. She could see the glare of the sun even through her closed eyelids, burning down on her once more, and she didn't want to face that. Far easier to lie here with her eyes glued shut. A shadow fell across Lucy's face, shading her, and she murmured her gratitude.

She tried to force her eyelids open but they were gummed shut in her swollen, battered face. She was vaguely surprised to realize that she wasn't dead, but she knew it was only a matter of time. Maybe, she thought, she _was_ dead. If so, this certainly didn't feel like any idea of heaven she'd ever been told about and the alternative wasn't pleasant to contemplate. She didn't want to wake up, didn't want to open her eyes. The effort would be too great.

Funny, she thought, a few hours ago she didn't have the energy to roll over. Now a simple act like raising her eyelids was beyond her. It would be easier to just lie here sleeping and fade away from it all.

She heard the crunch of footsteps on the sand and rock close by her. That was strange; she didn't remember anyone else being here. Then a hand slipped under her head and raised it, resting it on what felt like a knee, so that she was sitting half upright. She sighed. She simply wanted to be left alone.

For one dreadful moment, Lucy thought it was Killen, come back to finish her off. But the touch was gentle and the voice nonthreatening. "Lucy?" it asked frantically. A moment later, the sound of several running footsteps drew near.

"Jet, did you-"

Jet? As in Jet of Fairy Tail's team Shadow Gear? What was he doing here? A second body fell down next to her, groping for her wrist, followed by a sigh of relief.

"She's got a pulse."

"Thank god!" a third voice exclaimed. The voice was feminine.

_Jet_. Jet was in Shadow Gear with Droy and Levy, so was it possible that the other two…? She felt someone's arms go around her back and under her knees as her broken body left the ground.

"Don't worry, Lu-chan," someone whispered into her ear. "You're safe now."

That was the last thing she could remember before unconsciousness claimed her once more.

* * *

"Y-You're…" Natsu stammered.

"ERIGOR!" Gray yelled.

Erigor smirked. "Long time no see, flies," he cooed. His gaze shifted to the raven haired youth next to Natsu. "Ah, Gray. Hot tempered today, aren't we? How," he stroked his chin in thought, "_unfitting _for an ice mage, no?" He chuckled.

Erigor was the leader of former dark guild Eisenwald. He was also referred to as "The Death God", which was fitting with his appearance. He carried a large, oak handled razor sharp scythe, long and deadly looking. His wild white hair glinted oddly in the sunlight, and tattoos were emblazoned across his bare upper body; arms and torso altogether. Dark outlines surrounded his eyes, trailing two horizontal diamond shapes down below them. A tattered scarf flowed out behind him in the wind like a cape, as did the likewise tattered robe bottom. He looked exactly as he had when Natsu had first encountered him. Except the tattoo on his chest was now a serpent eye on the surface of an octagonal web. And his usually beady eyes were… _slits?_

The Eisenwald guild members had been rounded up after their little performance involving Lullaby [1]. However, Erigor had avoided capture and remained wanted by the authorities. No one had heard of his whereabouts since. That is, until now of course.

"Where. Are. Our. Friends." Gray emphasized. It was not a question. More like a demand.

Erigor gave a howl of laugher. "And why should I tell you?" he questioned. "They're probably long gone by now, the pitiful weaklings. They wouldn't stand a chance against me and my companions."

"Why you little-" Natsu screamed loudly and charged at Erigor.

"Don't!" Gray cried. He grabbed Natsu and held him back. Natsu struggled against Gray's unrelenting grasp. "Lemme at him! Lemme at him!"

"Shut up, will ya?" Gray hollered. It seemed too coincidental to find Erigor out in the middle of the desert, he thought, when it just so happened to be the location of their mission. Another thing, he added, they had been seeing that same symbol on his chest quite a lot lately.

"What are you doing here?" Gray asked pointedly.

Erigor held his arms out wide, as if he were trying to embrace the sky. "I seek salvation from the god of the Forgotten!" His voice carried in the wind, sending an echo throughout the area. "Lord Zephrion has granted me the power of immortality! The greatest quality of the gods! I shall never die! Never perish! I will live on, gathering magical power the world has never seen!"

"It's official," Natsu murmured. "He's lost it."

Erigor let go a wicked, crazed chuckle. His odd eyes bulged. "Now," he announced, drawing his scythe, "feel the power… OF A GOD!"

Erigor's hand was a blur of movement as he formed complicated gestures and signs.

"Storm Bringer!" he yelled, pointing two fingers at Natsu and Gray. A funnel-like vortex surged toward them, flinging sand into their eyes and temporarily blinding them. The two Fairy Tail wizards were hit head-on with the full force of the wind attack. Their feet left the ground and they were thrown spinning into the air. Natsu did a backwards summersault in midair and flames erupted from his feet, the force propelling him forward straight back towards Erigor.

"No matter how many times you use that move, it _still_ pisses me off!"

_**SMACK!**_

Natsu's flaming fist hit Erigor straight in the center of his forehead, sending him skidding on his back through the sand. Erigor quickly recovered, catching himself onto his hands and bringing his legs over in a fancy backhand spring. A thin trickle of blood flowed down his face from where the blow had struck, but he was completely unfazed.

Erigor let out a high-pitched, wicked laugh. "That tickled."

Gray shakily got to his feet. The heat battered down on him like a physical force as the sun rose higher in the sky. The air itself was superheated and almost scorched his throat and lungs when he breathed it in, sucking the very oxygen out of the air so that he gasped and panted for breath.

The glare was another constant torture, forcing him to look at the shimmering distance around Erigor with his eyes screwed almost shut. Natsu, he knew, wasn't affected by the heat. But Gray had to take the full sting of it now that he had no source of protection from it. _Ice and heat- bad combination!_

Erigor spotted Gray and his grinned widened. _Destroy the weakest link, and the rest shall fall._ Gray could barely make out the blur of hand signs as Erigor prepared to attack again. _Now or never_, he thought. He formed his right hand into a fist and slammed it into the palm of his left hand. If he was going to go down here, he had might as well go down fighting.

"Ice make-"

"Storm- " Erigor never had the time to finish building his attack.

**Thud!**

**Thud!**

**Thud!**

It was like being hit by carrots, Erigor thought. Then he looked down to where the impacts had come from. Three cards jutted out from his side, blood pouring down and staining his robes and forming little puddles on the sand where they quickly dried to a dull brown in the insufferable heat. He looked back up. Natsu's foot collided with his face, knocking him back again. He crashed unconscious into the sand a second time, falling and tumbling head over heels.

"You guys okay?"

Gray whirled around to find himself face to face with none other than Cana Alberca. "What are you doing here, Cana?" he asked in disbelief. Then again, he didn't know if he was more surprised about her being here or that she wasn't hauling around a keg of something alcoholic. She flipped her cards around into a neat pile before shoving them roughly into the back pocket of her jeans.

"Master sent out search groups for you four." she said evenly.

"What d'you mean 'search groups'?" Natsu asked, clearly annoyed at the old man's actions. "We only left Fairy Tail five days ago."

Cana shook her head. "Natsu, you've been gone two weeks."

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**Sorry for taking so long to write this chapter. I'm kind of losing motivation to continue writing this since I tend to be a bit self-criticizing when it comes to comparing my writing to others. I really appreciate reviews to let me know how I'm doing, so please review. It means a lot. Hell, review about _anything;_ comments, criticism, pointers, ideas, errors, what you had for dinner last night- whatever floats your boat. (or sinks it)**

**Oh yeah, I almost forgot! It's the 10th chapter!**

**To celebrate, I'd like to give a special thanks to **Tare-chan** and **yukihane** for being such awesome reviewers for TSoK! So thank you guys very much! :D**

**[1] See _Fairy Tail _volume 3.**

***Question for readers: Do you guys think I should make my chapters longer? I feel like sometimes they're too short compared to other stories here on . Please let me know!**

**As always, thanks for reading!**


	11. The Secret Revealed

**I do not own Fairy Tail. If I did, I probably wouldn't be sitting here at my computer writing this, now would I? ;-)**

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**Chapter 11**

"**Answers"**

The outline of a figure was visible now in the growing sand. At last the form was complete, but Erza was caught off guard by what it was.

"N-No way!"

A hand! It was a gigantic, misshapen hand. Erza froze. What was she supposed to do now? Her answer was clear when the fat fingers wrapped around her in a crashing grip and started throwing her around in the air. Erza desperately slashed at the sand creature, but as soon as she made a clean cut through the thing, more sand floated up to replace it. It was healing itself! Then again, how the hell are you supposed to beat _sand_? She couldn't breathe, her ribs were being crushed. Her vision was growing darker. And then the air came rushing by, the pressure gone. She was falling. She opened her eyes and saw the ground fast approaching. She landed face first, scraping a little along the rocks and sand.

Then she heard the sound of clanking metal as her sword tumbled out of her grip, landing point-down in the sand a few meters away.

Just as she turned over, she could see the back of a meaty hand disappearing behind the cliff wall, across to the other side. Erza was in no hurry to chase after the thing, whatever it was. She had a vague idea of what it was; a summon. Creatures like those didn't reside in the Solitary Desert, and the way it had taken form was proof enough of that. Summons were unique magic, and unlike Lucy's celestial spirits, they didn't think for themselves. They were puppets to the one who called on them, and were controlled directly through the summoner's magic.

The hand was being controlled by an unseen enemy wizard. And Erza didn't like the thought of that.

She painfully got up, making sure that nothing was broken. It was a little painful to breathe, but none of the ribs seemed to be damaged. Erza limped over and recovered her sword, examining it closely for any damage and let out a moan. There were two deep nicks in the edge of the blade, obviously from being bounced along the stony ground. One glance told Erza that she'd spend at least an hour honing and sharpening to get rid of them. That, however, was the least of her problems at the moment.

A clinking sound brought her back to the present situation, and something skidded to a stop behind her, sending pebbles and gravel flying. She did a one-eighty and was surprised at what her eyes met. A magic four-wheeler car resided in front of her, and its driver stepped out into the sunlight.

"Oui."

"Reedus?"

"Yo, Erza! Whoa, you look like hell. Then again, join the party."

"Aye!"

"Natsu? Happy?" Erza jogged over to them, for once relieved at the sight of their ridiculous looking faces. As she drew near, she quickly took in its occupants. That's when she noticed some missing people.

"Where're Gray and Lucy?" she asked, concern obvious in her voice.

"Oh, right. Gray's in there," Natsu informed her, jerking a thumb inside the four-wheeler. "Damn Frosty couldn't take the heat, so I told him to stay outta the kitchen."

Erza rolled her eyes at the cheesy line, then shuffled around to the door of the magic vehicle and glanced inside. A passed out Gray lay on one of the small benches. His face was red and flushed, his shirt and shoes discarded leaving his feet and torso bare. Cana was wiping his forehead with a cool cloth.

"You're here too?" Erza asked her, kneeling next to Gray and putting her hand on his forehead. _He's burning up!_ She shook her head. "Ice and heat-"

"-bad combination." Cana nodded, not looking up from her work. "I'll fill you in on what's happening on the way to the guild."

Erza opened and closed her mouth several times, questions forming but remaining unspoken. _She looks_ _like a goldfish when she does that_, Natsu thought with a snicker.

"And Lucy?" prompted Erza.

Cana paused and dropped her eyes to her lap, wringing the damp towel in her hands anxiously. "Shadow Gear found her. They're taking her back to F.T. as well."

Erza let out a sigh of relief. For a moment she had feared the worse. It was a comfort to know they were in good hands. She admitted that she was confused about what was going on, but she had a feeling everything would be explained sooner or later.

"But…" Cana continued suddenly, let eyes lifting to meet the warrior's gaze. "She's not doing to good, last I hear."

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"Let me get this straight," Erza said slowly. "We've been gone for _two weeks_?"

The four-wheeler car thundered across the desert, bouncing and jerking at the slightest pebble that was in its course, and there just so happened to be _a lot _of damn pebbles. _Well Reedus is certainly taking his sweet frickin' time driving, _Natsu thought bitterly as his head collided with the ceiling for the fourth time. He leaned out of the window once again, his face turning even a darker shade of green as his insides lurched and heaved. _Why didn't Erza let me walk home?_

Cana nodded. Gray had woken up now that he was under cover from the unrelenting sun. He had pulled out the tattered pieces of his ice cloak and had them laid across his lap, trying to absorb any remaining chill from the remains. If the wind blew at a certain angle, he could almost get a small whiff of cold, but it died as instantly as it began. It didn't help that the wind was like breathing into hot coals.

"We believe it has something to do with the Iron Flutes," Cana explained, flipping over one of her cards for the tenth time and, still getting the same result, turned it back over angrily. "Levy said the Flutes are part of an ancient legend or something-or-other. Something to do with some kind of demonic cult."

A wave of pain from Erza's ribs made her wince and crouch over, holding her arm protectively over the fragile bones. It still hurt if she took too deep breaths. _I probably landed on it,_ she thought. No doubt they were bruised.

"Anyway, long story short," Cana continued, cracking her neck. "The Flutes apparently make time pass slower wherever you can hear their sound."

"Some kind of wide range ritual magic?" Erza asked with a grunt.

Cana lifted her shoulders in a shrug. "Maybe. Levy's still researching on all the details."

Gray hesitated. "But if you knew that, why come get us?" he asked.

"Because," Cana replied, "the cult who first created the Iron Flutes is alive in this very desert."

"Wouldn't that make them, like, a thousand years old?" Gray laughed. "You said it yourself Cana. It's ancient history! They couldn't possibly be alive. Time goes by slower here. So what? Why make us abandon the job Makarov gave us?"

Cana turned her steady gaze onto his. "Let me ask you this, Gray. If you wanted to achieve immortality, how would you go about doing it?"

Gray scratched his chin in thought. The thought had never once occurred to him. "Well," he said slowly, "if time goes by slower here, then you'd be able to live longer, right? But to live forever and be immortal and stuff? Hell if I know." he admitted.

"Come to think of it," he added as an afterthought. "Erigor said something about being immortal before he, you know, attacked us!" He jerked his head in the diection of the vehicle's trunk where Erigor was bound and gagged, on express delivery to Onibus prison. They had no further use for him, so they felt it fair to just throw him back to the authorities. If they needed answers later, they could pay him a visit. Otherwise, they wanted him off of their hands.

"Exactly." Cana said, nodding in satisfaction. He had said exactly what she wanted to hear. "All human beings die of old age or other causes eventually. It's part of life. Except this cult is different…"

"_Different_?" Erza asked. "Different how?"

"Remember how I said they were a _demonic _cult?" she questioned.

Erza nodded, shivering slightly. The topic of demons was not a pleasant one. "And what is one quality that demons have?"

At the group's confused looks, she decided to just spell it out for them. "Demons can possess other life forms."

Something suddenly clicked inside Erza and Gray's minds. "Y-You mean they take over other people's bodies?" Gray asked shakily.

"Of course!" Erza suddenly blurted out, banging her fist into the side of the car. She winced slightly as her wounds flared. "It makes sense now! Your body ages, but the soul doesn't!"

"Wha-? Natsu asked. "W-w-what you talkin' b-bout' Erz-_urk!"_

Erza ignored him. "The reason they're still alive is because they use a soul transfer technique. When they're bodies start to give out, they take over the corpse of their victim's!"

Gray raised an eyebrow. "This sounds a whole lot like Jellal's R-system."

"A soul transfer technique is more advanced," said Cana, warming to her theme. "The R-system required something like a soul exchange. A soul for a soul. Take a life to bring one back. With a soul transfer, the wizard can use any corpse."

"The wizard performs a ritual that moves his own soul into the body, making it his own." Erza said. Makarov had told her about this kind of thing before, and the more she heard the more it unnerved her. "And with the aid of the Iron Flutes…" she felt no need to finish the sentence. The others had already finished it for themselves. _They could live even longer in those supposed forms._

"So," Gray said patiently, "what you're saying is that we are being targeted by these people- er, demons?"

Cana nodded in confirmation. "That's what Master suspects. They can't just use any corpse, of course. It has to have magical qualities to it. In other words, a wizard."

"A wizard's body for a wizard's soul, huh." Gray muttered.

"Another thing: those who they've _consumed,_ I suppose I should call it, their magic accumulates and gets transferred along with the soul. So if these guys are as old as we think they are, it's possible they have more magic energy and powers than humanly possible."

Gray whistled in admiration. "Damn. Sucks for us."

"Levy said that every wizard who travels into the Solitary Desert mysteriously disappears. And now I think we have an idea as to where they've disappeared to." said Cana.

"It's a good thing I'm not a human wizard then." Happy said cheerfully.

Natsu glared at him through watery eyes. "Anybody else in the mood for cat for supper?"

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**Sorry for taking a ridiculous amount of time to update chapters. I've been really busy lately and hadn't had much time to write. But, at long last, I present the 11th chapter!**

**Thanks for all the support and reviews I received. You guys rock!**

**I hope the plot isn't getting too complicated. If it comes down to it, I'll rewrite this chapter to try and get my point across better, but I think I did a fairly good job. I might or might not depending on the feedback. ****For people who are familiar with **_Naruto_**, think of it like something Orochimaru would do. :D**

**I made this chapter a tad longer than my previous ones upon request, so let me know what you think!**

**Thanks for reading! R&R.**

**_P.S. Sorry for the short action scene. I kind of ran out of ideas. :(_**


	12. A Desperate Situation

**I do not own Fairy Tail. If I did, I probably wouldn't be sitting here at my computer writing this, now would I? ;-)**

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**Chapter 12**

"**A Desperate Situation"**

Darkness…everything was dark and quiet; she barely registered her own shallow breathing. She wasn't afraid of the dark; quite the contrary, she found it…comforting, like a soft blanket. She didn't feel angry, she didn't feel happy, she didn't feel afraid or sad…she felt…relief. Like she had just come back from a tough guild job; all those long hours of walking and fighting were finally finished and now, at last, she could rest. Then, suddenly, the darkness left her. She was disappointed at the interruption of her wonderful darkness. Now she did not feel relieved…she felt weakness and hopelessness. She felt fatigue and helplessness. Then she felt pain; a crippling agony that threatened to overwhelm her senses.

The pain that was coursing through her was so intense, so mind-numbing, Lucy wondered if she'd ever survive it.

Others were bustling around her, trying to stop the bleeding from her wounds or trying to cool her raging body temperature down. If she could talk, Lucy would have told them to just let her die.

"Lucy?" someone asked from her right, feeling the person's finger intertwine with her own in what she guessed was supposed to be a comfort gesture. "Can you hear me?"

Again, Lucy tried to speak, but all that came out was another strangled groan.

"Levy."

"What?"

"Have you found an antidote yet?"

"I'm working on it."

"Well work faster!"

"R-right."

The hand that had been holding her own vanished and she faintly heard the rapid flipping of pages in which she assumed was a book.

_Antidote?_ Then the memories of her battle with Killen came flooding back and her heart sunk. _That's_ _right_, Lucy thought, _I was poisoned._ A flurry of emotions ran through her at once, seeming to come out of nowhere that caused her to gasp, as if reality had just started to write itself out and she was connecting the dots; disappointment, sadness, anger, frustration-and then the truth hit her like a ton of bricks.

_I am…_

_Weak._

_

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_

Mirajane finished polishing the same glass for the tenth time, her nerves getting the better of her as she waited anxiously for the others to return, glancing at the guild doors every few seconds. She sighed and set the glass down. _This is stupid, _she scolded herself. _They'll probably show up any minute with those goofy grins plastered all over their faces and start telling the whole guild the story while Lucy comes up to the bar and starts complaining about Natsu destroying everything and that she still doesn't have her rent money._ She chuckled silently to herself. _So basically the usual._ She was trying to convince herself more than anything, but it didn't entirely evaporate her concern.

"Why the long face?"

Mirajane jumped in surprise and whirled around. "Master, don't _do that!_" she scolded.

Makarov simply shrugged and took a wig of his drink. "Have a little faith, child," he coaxed. "This is Fairy Tail's strongest team we're talking about here."

"But this is an S-class job we're talking about!"

"And…your point?"

Mirajane sighed in annoyance and rolled her eyes. "Well, it's dangerous, that's my point!"

"C'mon Mira, they've been through more perilous situations than this. They survived the Demon Island, did they not?" Makarov asked, and Mira nodded reluctantly. "Then there's nothing to worry about! Since when has our guild's strongest team ever let us down, hm?"

_Fairy Tail's strongest team, huh?_ Mirajane thought, and then smiled. "You're probably right," she agreed, a feeling of reassurance washing over her.

But that feeling vanished as quickly as it had come as the guild doors burst open to Jet carrying an unconscious Lucy in his arms, Levy and Droy running in quickly on his heels.

Mirajane dropped the glass she was holding and it shattered across the floor. She thought nothing of it though as she rushed around the bar and knelt next to Lucy's side. Her current state was horrendous. Lucy's clothes were ripped and torn around her, revealing numerous injuries, some more serious than others; a long deep gash ran from her chest to her side, staining the shreds of clothing red. The worst part by far was Lucy's arm; a hideous shade of green covered most of the arm from the shoulder down and was darker in one area than others. A pungent odor emitted from it.

Mirajane put her hand over her mouth in horror. Others had noticed the arrival of the small team and a small crowd was forming. Makarov pushed his way to the front and a look of shock crossed his face before he composed it again.

"M-master, there was nothing we could do, it just-"Droy stammered numbly.

"I don't know what happened, she was-"

Makarov held up his hand to stop Levi's comment. Gawking over this situation would do no good, he thought. He wouldn't do this unless it was an emergency, and with that he turned to Mirajane and said in a voice full of angst, "Send for Porlyusica immediately."

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**IMPORTANT AUTHOR'S NOTE! PLEASE READ! YOUR LIFE DEPENDS ON IT! (Okay, maybe not that one.)**

**I apologize for the EXPREMELY long time it took to update, and this chapter is my shortest yet. I have been super busy with school lately; finals, theatre rehearsals, homework, projects, tests, you name it. I would like you to know that I HAVE NOT GIVEN UP ON THIS STORY AND INTEND TO CONTINUE WITH IT. I give my word to try my best and update ASAP.**

**One more thing: Some reviews I have received have commented on me using references from the novel series **_**Ranger's Apprentice**_**. Yes, this is true that I have incorporated some of the same material from that book, but am by no means taking credit for it. The series was the inspirational start for my writing and I just so happened to be thinking of Fairy Tail at the same time that I was reading it. Thus, I sort of blended the two together because I thought it would fit well together.**

**So don't hate. It's a **_**fan**_**fiction, so I can do what I want with it. I'm not trying to be rude, but I'm trying to do the best I can with the free time I have, which is virtually nonexistent at this point. Christmas vacation is coming up on the 17****th**** of December and I will make an effort to spit out the next chapter by then or tweak chapters I feel need tweaking.**

**Thank you all for your support and helping give me a shove in the right direction. When my schedule is less crowded, I'll try my best to update. But don't expect too frequent updates until the break. Until then, thank you and please don't be mad! :{**


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